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Jean-Marc Ela (27 September 1936 – 26 December 2008) was a sociologist, Diocesan Priest, Professor and author of many books on theology, philosophy, and social sciences in Africa. His most famous work, ''African Cry'' has been called the "soundest illustration" of the spirit of liberation theology in sub-Saharan Africa.〔V.Y. Mudimbe, ''The Invention of Africa''. Bloomington, IN: Indiana UP, 1988.〕 His works are widely cited as exemplary of sub-Saharan Christian African theology for their focus on contextualisation and their emphasis on community-centered approaches to theology.〔Stinton, D., "Africa, East and West." In ''An Introduction to Third World Theologies'' J. Parrat, Ed. New York: Cambridge UP, 2004.〕 He was buried in his hometown of Ebolowa, Cameroon. ==Biography== Jean-Marc Ela was born on 27 September 1936 in Ebolowa, in the African nation of Cameroon. The son of a middle-class family in southern Cameroon, Ela claimed that he first began to think of theology as a discipline that should be concerned with the local needs of believers while he was studying philosophy and theology in France at the University of Strasbourg in the 1960s.〔Y. Assogba. ''Jean-Marc Ela: Le sociologue et theologien africain en boubou. Entretiens''. Paris: L'Harmattan, 1999.〕 He studied sociology at the University of Strasbourg as well as at the University of Sorbonne. However, it was during his sixteen-year experience as a missionary working among the Kirdi of northwestern Cameroon that he developed and articulated most of the arguments in ''African Cry'' and ''My Faith as an African''. He spent a great deal of his research and of his life beside Baba Simon, beloved minister to the Kirdis of the North Cameroon in Tokombéré. His thesis at Strausburg was on the image of the cross in Luther's theology. Ela was unique in that as a sociologist, he brought a social-science critique to his theology. As a theologian, he proved unorthodox not only in embracing social sciences but also in his penchant for studying topics that tested the boundaries of Catholic orthodoxy. As a missionary, he earned the respect and love of his community in Tokombere. As a Professor, he was popular with students around the globe. He held professorships in Cameroon, Belgium, USA, Canada, Benin, France, and Congo, among other places. A vocal critic of both ecclesiastical and political institutions, Ela entered voluntary exile in Quebec after the assassination of fellow Cameroonian priest Englebert Mveng in 1995. Ela resided in Montreal, where he served as a Professor of Sociology at the University of Laval at Montreal, from 1995 until his death 26 December 2008, in Vancouver.〔Y. Assogba. ''Jean-Marc Ela: Le sociologue et théologien africain en boubou. Entretiens''. Paris: L'Harmattan, 1999.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jean Marc Ela」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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